What do you do for a living?

What do you folks do for a living? I know that some actually woodwork for a living . . . but what do the rest of you do to pay for the new tools in the shed?

I’ll start . . . Labour Relations Consultant for a large organization. I have actually been working in Human Resources for about 10 years now. I would like to eventually have some of my woodworking projects bring in a few extra $$$ . . . but I have to get good first :).

678 comments so far

Well at the moment I am a full time student. Planing on opening a shop and producing furniture for a living. Before I became a fulltime student, I ran my own furniture repair and refinishing business. Which I will most likely reopen when I return to the states. Just to help with the cash flow. But it’s not something that I plan on doing for long. (refinishing and repairing that is.)

I’m a software architect currently designing software for movies and music playing on cell phones. Stuff like sharing music videos from one phone to another or showing pictures from a cell phone onto a TV. I’ve been in computer hardware and software engineering since the mid 70’s and I’m really tired of it. It was fun when I could actually create the software myself, but now I do some design and the software is produced in China. Hoping someday to get good enough at woodworking to make it a business. I’m still too slow and particular and have so much to learn. Great to have a place to converse with so many like minded and talented woodworkers.

this is a great topic—it’s nice to know who we can turn to if we have a non-woodworking question :D

Currently: Life Guide, helping people overcome barriers in their lives, mostly relationship issues. I’m also a day Care Consultant, having an Early Childhood Educator background. Highlight of my career was facilitating a parenting program with male inmates at a correctional centre. I could have done that all my life, I think, if it had been an option,

Other hobbies: photography, writing (I write a weekly article for our local paper) some leatherwork

after 12 years as a graphic designer – going from drafting table and clip art to 40+ hours at a computer (PC???) – the last 4 managing my dept – I’ve demoted myself to part-time, so I could work days with my dad. He’s been doing renovations, landscaping and handyman type work the past couple years, after being downsized one time too many.

Our bread and butter comes from subcontracting for Owens Corning (basements), which occasionally involves woodworking, but we also do our own jobs to fill in the gaps (when and if we get them – gaps, I mean)

The two jobs – physical labor, and computer work – provide me with pretty good balance. Previously woodworking was the antidote to all the hours at the computer (now a Mac!)

I sometimes miss my colleagues at the former day job, (especially on the crappy weather days) as I pretty much fly solo when I’m there – but I’m enjoying the time with my father so much more. I used to worry about what I’d do next… and was afraid to take career steps without something to fall back on from there, but now I’m so much happier than I’ve been in years.

Woodworking is still my hobby… though I tell myself I wouldn’t mind making a little money from it.

Recently retired from Glacier National Park as the information Guru for all visitors who contacted the park. So I now also need to earn money by selling stuff to buy any new tools…lol

I am now working more than full time between my shop and projects and my website which has begun to generate some business already. I am now getting clearance to show my work at some local Farmers Markets and art shows once I have enough inventory built up. Woodworking is a passion I plan to make some money at.

I’m a sales manager for a manufacturer located in Ohio. I get to show our products to end users and work with distributors to sell our products vs. the competition. I cover Georgia and Florida (someone has to, right?).

Full-time Christian Minister (preacher) with an eye towards ending up where I daydreamed about starting out. That being bi-vocational – part-time minister and full/part-time woodworker. Problem was, I prepared for the minister part (college, post-graduate seminary) and didn’t prepare for the wooworking part back 20 years ago. Add to that marriage, kids, etc. and I got caught up in going with the flow of life. No regrets about where God has led, but the call of working with my hands as well has never gone away. Looking towards trying to make a transition towards bi-vocational life somewhere in the next 8-10 years (get kids through college). I’m trying to be diligent about preparing better this time though. Trying to save my pennies, take on a few “paying” projects repairing, refinishing and furniture commissions (below what I should charge but in order to gain the needed experience and skill) and roll that $ over into tools and getting better – by taking classes with accomplished professionals in the trade and work on my skills in the shop. If I keep praticing and learning, I think I could get there with my long range plan.